I was recently diving head first into quantum computing. Even though I know it’s years away from practical applications, it’s not Star Trek technology anymore. This exercise in future thinking got me wondering which technologies that are actually happening now but still considered early are worthy of my attention.

So I ask you, friends, readers, and brilliant minds, to help me out and answer a short survey about emerging technologies. I’m interested to know which of these you are deploying now, will be implementing in the future, might not be using, or simply are still not sure what it is. These responses will guide some of my future content, so your response can influence what you see here in the future. That’s real power! I promise, this is anonymous.

Talk about bad timing. Ten days ago I wrote a slightly – slightly – snarky blog about the artist, Prince. In it, I heaped derision upon him and his management company for pulling all of his songs from Spotify and other streaming music services. These included his songs that were recorded by other artists. Little did I know that the artist Prince, who became the artist-formerly-known-as-Prince, and then was known once again as Prince, would become the artist that was formerly Prince. Or the former artist Prince? It’s confusing.

This is a bit embarrassing. How was I to know that he would up and die at 57? Fade away perhaps but not outright die until he was like 80 or something. I mean, if Keith Richards and Mick Jagger are still going at 72 one would think Prince should at least get to 70 or more. I mean, have you seen those guys?

The points I was making in my blog – that refusing to publish on streaming music sites hurts the artists and that Prince was making himself irrelevant to younger generations in the process – are still valid. Imagine how many people would be streaming his music right now if only he had allowed it.

I just wish I made these points six months ago. Timing here, as in comedy, is everything.

So, if you are a Prince fan, rest assured I meant no harm. I just hated to see a great artist cut himself off from an entire generation of potential fans. A generation that will now never get to see him in person. And who still can’t hear his music the way they listen to music thereby assuring that he will fade into history.